With local mothers-to-be already nervous about the uncertainties surrounding giving birth in this shire, Dr McGirr needs to understand that these women are probably amongst the most prepared in Australia right now.

Could he explain how Kerrie Chester could have avoided her early and spontaneous labour, resulting in her delivery in Pambula Hospital emergency room? Can he, for one minute try to imagine the trauma and fear that Kerrie experienced, faced with the probability of delivering on the roadside on her way to Bega Hospital? It seems unfair both to mothers and ambulance officers to put them into a situation where, should an emergency occur; they would be woefully ill equipped to deal with the consequences.

I suggest that there was nothing lazy or unplanned about Kerrie’s birthing plans, nor the plans of either of our local girls who delivered in their own bathtubs. I suggest that, given the choice, they would have avoided these appalling situations at all cost.

Apparently many babies are born in ambulances every year. Maybe so, but does this make it preferable? And do those ambulances drive straight past a fully functional maternity unit, which has been ruled ‘out-of-bounds’ to its doctors and midwives?

The United Nations World Health Report 2005 claims that: “A woman should be able to give birth in an appropriate environment close to where she lives and that respects her birthing culture.”

Since when was the GSAHS above the jurisdiction of the UN?

To imply that women have control over the arrival time of their baby is to display a breathtaking level of ignorance and arrogance, and is doubly shocking coming from a clinician who surely should know better.

It also confirms our suspicions that those making decisions on our behalf are out of touch with the real and desperate situation we live with everyday.

Is Dr McGirr implying that pregnant mothers should all camp on the Bega Hospital grounds in case they need to get there quickly?

A trip out of the “ bureaucratic bubble” would be beneficial for all.

Sharon Tapscott

Lochiel

Runway extension

People talk of the need for development as if it is not only vital but also good for the community.

What about the hundreds of people who invested their life savings in relocating to Merimbula for the very reason that it was not over developed.

If they wanted to live on the Sunshine Coast they would have gone there.

I hope to relocate to Merimbula in the near future, however I would hate to think that it could end up looking like Queensland.

The only people in favour of development are the developers who stand to make money out of it.

Edward Aldridge

Summer Hill NSW

Tree trouble

Open letter to Bega Valley Shire Council general manager Peter Tegart

I would like to inform you about the possible poisoning of the Heritage Fig Tree in Imlay Street, Eden and if you are aware of it what is Council doing about restoring it back to health.

While I have your attention who’s bright idea was (it) to concrete almost to the trunk of the Eucalyptus that is next to the Merimbula Information Centre. If left like that, it will die. Are you going to fix it or just let another bit of the shire die?

Jeff Knight

Towamba

Airport extension fantasy

I cannot allow comments attributed to Mr Wheeler in the article on his vision for an extension of Merimbula airport runway (MNW 21/10) to go unchallenged.

No justification for any of the impassioned statements about “why” are given, only bald statements as if they represent accepted fact.

The comparison with the case of Maroochydore airport upgrade ignores all the other variables in the mix that make that case different from Merimbula’s and therefore invalidates any reasonably intelligence analysis of that comparison.

The more recent and continuing pronouncements by Wheeler in this paper, about $75 airfares and the like, simply renders his comments as bordering on fantasyland stuff.

If we are to have a real chance of considering the adequacy of our airport, then let us do this with logic, knowledge and experience. Above all, let us not end up - yet again - becoming victims of some council supported or inspired “grand plan.”

For the record, I have been co-chief executive of a successful airline; was project leader for construction of Yulara Airport at Uluru; and am still a specialised strategic analytical consultant working at home and abroad.

Don Mcdowell

Pambula

Bridge picnic offends

I have voted for the Labor Party on and off for 40 years, but I never believed a Labor Premier would try to close down country hospitals and save money, so that the people of Sydney could have a picnic on the Harbour Bridge.

Have we become a third world country or is it just that our Premier is back there in kindergarten?

M E Martin

Tura Beach

Airport or tip?

Airport or tip? It seems an unlikely debate to have to have in a small rural community, doesn’t it?

We, the “small part of the community” who admittedly would be inconvenienced by the proposed Frogs Hollow airport extension have but one question - why do we have to have either?

We purchased our home specifically for its location, lifestyle and surrounds as did many others in the area - or inherited family land held for generations as agricultural.

When one sits in an ivory castle at the top of the hill and makes the sweeping statements re the serfs below, it must be easy to flip a coin and decide on the fate of the poor unfortunates affected by those decisions. Far easier than actually figuring out a much better and more suitable alternative.

An amazing fact I suppose, is that none of those making either decision (should we put a super tip here or are we going to extend the airport?) will be affected by said decision!

How about our illustrious members of council, hellbent on putting the tip at the centre of the universe (alias Wolumla for those unfortunates who don’t know) or the ivory tower holder himself, have their lives taken over, their lifestyles threatened, their property values decimated, their health endangered and their concerns trivialised, and see if they’re happy about it.

I don’t think so! But it’s easy to be flippant and disinterested when the

buck stops far short of your own front door, isn’t it?

Beth Smith

Wolumla

(New centre of the universe)

Response to editorials and articles

Articles and editorials in MNW 28 October, cannot go unanswered.

They show a lack of understanding on the part of the authors of the status of a law.

The Federal Government exercising power under subsection 27(5) of the Australian Citizenship Act 2007, decreed that only certain classes of people could receive the pledge of commitment under the Act. This reduced the classes that existed before the change. In this particular instance it remove deputy mayor from the class.

Staff reported this to council in the business paper for the meeting of 20 October.

Sensibly, staff perceived that the public would prefer an elected official, rather than a bureaucrat, carry out the ceremony. This view was expressed in the business paper and consequently staff were faced with only one elected official to perform a ceremony which in the past had been performed in two towns. Somewhat difficult to arrange.

A recommendation was made to council, as is normal practice, and I have no doubt that it was made in good faith and for the purpose of stimulating debate so that councillors could resolve something which had been imposed on the Shire from above. It should be noted that this directive from the Federal Minister was to all States and Territories and overseas diplomatic representatives.

Obviously others were concerned by the directive such that the Minister in the days before council’s meeting extended the class to include deputy mayor.

Problem solved.

The spectre of north/south division of the Shire is anathema to the overall good of the Shire.

It should have no role in the way in which the elected councillors conduct themselves and I genuinely believe that is the way in which the current council addresses issues.

The suggestion that council get heavy-handed with the State by charging rates on hospitals and schools overlooks s. 556 of the Local Govt Act which says it can’t.

Councillor

Pat Campbell

Tathra

Forget Woolies, build what the town needs

I received a letter from council with revised plans for Woolworths on the parking area in Main Street showing a plan that was swivelled 90 degrees. This small computer-generated rotation changes the whole complexity of the proposal but when I went to view the plans at council’s Merimbula office my letter stated they would be for view from October 22. On Monday, October 26 there were none to be found, so they will send some down I was told for me to view Tuesday, but the library is shut.

The new plan also is trying to include a new road at the rear of the bowling club from somewhere (they haven’t made final plans yet, but they intend to join into Sapphire Coast Drive just before the bridge on the bowling club’s side.

The council have been trying extensively to pamper to Woolies wish list by gaining an entry point by negotiations, which failed, to do a deal with other Main Street landowners. If this intersection is allowed to happen it will make travel in both directions congested when using the Berrambool neck area; traffic from the caravan park would not be able to join in easily; increased traffic to and from the north would slow and the turning of trucks if it is to be used by Woolies for deliveries would be a greater obstacle.

By last week’s article even the writer has seen the obvious in Mr Murphy writing “plans appear to be drawn up in consultation with council” could be constructed as the council has been bending over backwards to get this plan off the shelf and to satisfy Mr Rawson’s wishes.

“A large plaza area in front of the supermarket”, this is our ratepayers’ land that was purchased by council for Merimbula services, where would they go.

This was a feat by Mr Hetherington when in office and attributed as forward thinking, surely, we as owners, could get better value for our buck.

Suggestion: Forget Woolies, build what the town needs, a high market end hotel; conference or large venue facility, add a gym and sports area to associate Berrambool and the bowling club; supply town needs like toilets, mother’s room and amenities, with tiered level parking and a boom gate if necessary.

They say they will increase jobs, well I just heard from my daughter in the ‘Gong and they have disposed of checkout staff and have auto scanners. What’s next, robots to fill the shelves and CCTV to make sure they don’t get ripped off, sorry who is?

This DA has too many shortfalls to name them all; one is it is a non standard supermarket, so it doesn’t even conform to their own set of regulations. This is a second rate option for a first class town.

As for council, the viewing and consultation process for concern should be extended till the end of November for a rightful objection to allow proceedings to be formulated to object to this inferior product being forced upon us.

I would like to object to urge people to look at the plans Option 4, DP 2008.0629 and send a letter of objection under one of the following, traffic management, safety concerns with large vehicles, shade to green 1 and the bowlo’s additional rear carriageway, minimum car space size, environmental objective, use of alternative energy, water reuse, or a topic of your choice.

Phil McManus

Merimbula

ETS a tax that dares not speak its name

Most of Barry Steven’s letter of last week is a load of old tosh written to excuse the con being perpetrated by the Rudd Labor Government at the same time as the Lowy Institute poll highlighted the grown scepticism by Australians of their attitude towards man-made global warming.

The first and most important thing to note about Kevin Rudd’s Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS), is that it is a tax.

It’s not called a tax, but if it waddles like one, quacks like one, and most importantly raises money like one, it’s a tax. And not just an old tax, it’s a huge and continually growing tax. It is the equivalent of increasing the GST from 10 to 25.5 percent in year one alone. Crucially, and very ominously, there is no cap on this insidious version of a GST. The effective rate could double or triple with no referral back to parliament for endorsement.

But hey, it’s not called a tax, it’s a scheme. Indeed, the ETS was specially chosen in rejection of a carbon tax. That’s a tax. The ETS is a fundamental piece of dishonesty from the government’s overall so-called carbon pollution reduction scheme (CPRS). It has nothing to do with carbon as carbon, far less pollution, but with emissions of pure carbon dioxide, without which there would be no life on earth.

Now how come the government is establishing what is in effect a gigantic slush fund? Who wouldn’t be happy taking $12 billion (and increasing every year), in a new tax on the explicit promise to hand it back. Oh, I’m sorry, not back, but to those it thinks need it, or where it will do the Labor Party the most good, especially when it delivers the promise with almost childishly silly language. Every cent?

And just to make sure, it will force customers to purchase their high-priced power by mandating that power companies source 20 per cent of their power from ‘alternative sources’ by 2020. Where will that power come from? There is only one answer other than the blindingly obvious nuclear, wind. Except there’s one problem with wind - it’s useless. You will have to keep fully functioning coal power up and running, not just when the wind is not blowing, but all the times.

All this is, of course is to absolutely no purpose. Even cutting Australia’s CO2 emissions to zero would make zero difference to global emissions.

Did I also mention that an ETS would increase household grocery prices by 10 percent, not to mention every other billable consumable, costing some households hundreds of dollars a month? Inflation anyone?

For the reasons of perhaps ill-advised ideology, anyone currently supporting the ETS, and who stridently demand an immediate signed agreement, are betraying both common sens and the national interest of all Australians.

The current mantra and logic expressed by academia, the Greens and the ‘chattering classes’ goes like this; if you’re really sincere about combating climate change, you must give unconditional support to Labor’s ETS.

For the most part, the so-called quality press, radio and television programmes champion this scheme, without ever examining how it would actually work and what it would cost to the individual when put in practise.

The Labor Government are trying to impose potentially crushing costs on exports, business and consumes. The ETS is the tax that dare not speak its name, and Kevin Rudd is hoping that no one notices.

John Tait

Merimbula

How can 900 be counted one?

In Jeff Smith’s ‘your say’ last week regarding the previous EIS consultant and stating the perception residents were apathetic as only 30 odd

submissions had been put in (to the council). When she was told that over 900 residents had signed a petition against the tip, “she said that the council only counted the petition as one submission”.

I sure as hell would like her to explain how she or the council can put nine hundred bodies in a one-person coffin, and if the council treats petitions from its voters and ratepayers in this manner then we are in deep trouble.

Our voices and opinions will never be heard or acted upon in the manner we desire or require.

Jeff’s comments regarding the EIS, were also spot on when he pointed that council must provide simplified versions of the EIS for the general population at no cost.

I couldn’t help but be amazed that the matter of litter containment issues at the Wanatta Lane proposed tip site appears to have been glossed over as if it wasn’t an issue of concern to the council or the residents living near the tip site. But it is one hell of an issue because the residences of Wolumla don’t want all the wind-blown rubbish in their homes and yards.

On this same subject why is it necessary to have two tips near Wolumla, the recently proposed Wanatta Lane site and the previously used tip site just up the road on the southbound lane from the turn off to Yellow Pinch Dam.

The site near the dam has been closed for some time since when the Princes Highway was redirected to its present position, but the access to the tip site is still in place.

I want to know why can’t that site be reopened and utilised instead of wasting thousands of dollars trying to establish an eyesore in the community that nobody wants.

One major advantage of this existing disused site is that it is out of site from the road; it is big enough to be expanded without adding to the contamination problems that would surely occur at the proposed Wanatta Lane site.

It would be interesting to know if the council even considered the site near the Yellow Pinch turn off, when it was looking at possible locations for the new tip.

And if it wasn’t considered then why in the hell not?

Alonzo “Lonnie” Llewellyn

Wolumla

Majesty again?

Re: “Majesty at Pambula Beach” News Weekly 28/10/09

Dear Josh Freestone, I read your article about the Pambula River Mouth whales and couldn’t help but be deeply impressed!

You called the Lord and He provided.

Here’s my problem: We went on a whale watching cruise last week and, unfortunately, it wasn’t the best day for it. Could you please call on Him again and have the whales reappear in the river mouth. Thursday morning would be good, or, if that’s inconvenient, Friday.

Thank you very much in advance.

Robin Fehr

Pambula Beach

Support for Ian Baker’s ‘dream’

We moved to the district in December 2005, besides Merimbula being a great place to live on the South Coast it also had a huge bearing on our decision to take up residency here as it has an airport.

Our business requires frequent travel to Sydney/Melbourne and whilst travel is a part of business the flight is very time consuming for day trips as you waste half a day waiting for the return flight from Melbourne.

Our business also brings visitors to the region and in most cases an overnight stay is required, this too contributes to the local restaurants/cafes.

The facilities do need to be upgraded and car parking is very limited. A recently concluded trip to Dubbo with Rex when making comparisons our Merimbula Airport is quite outdated by comparison.

I am in complete agreement with Ian’s comment to not move the location of the airport as the proximity to town is a great benefit, I believe that we only have two standard cabs and two maxi-cabs in the region which as they are well utilised would also be a delay when arriving late with evening flights.

Increasing our capacity would also see more people visit and stay in the region/area both in relation to business and of course that enviable ‘sea change’.

I would also like to congratulate both Ian and Cathy along with their past and present staff as a traveller who utilises their services they always made an individual feel very welcome regardless of the adversity they encounter; come on ‘BVSC’ and our ‘Local Government’, get behind this proposal as the long-term benefits will definitely outweigh the costs.

Mario Arcidiacono

Mirador